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Characterize The Pigments From The Tomb Of Nakht-Djehuty?

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Characterize The Pigments From The Tomb Of Nakht-Djehuty?
The main objective of the present work is to characterize some pigments from the tomb of Nakht-Djehuty (TT189), time of Ramesses II (c.1279–1212 BC), El-Assasif district, El-Qurna necropolis, Luxor (ancient Thebes), Upper Egypt. The characterization of the examined wall paintings was carried out by means of optical microscopy (OM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) equipped with an energy dispersive X-ray detector (EDS), X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT–IR) and the colorimetric characterization. The results revealed the characterization of the stratigraphic structure of wall decorations of the tomb and their chemical composition. The obtained results helped in identifying the chromatic palette used in one of the tombs dating back to the Ramesside period in ancient Egypt.

Keywords: Wall paintings, Tomb of Nakht-Djehuty, El-Qurna, Pigments, SEM–EDS, FT–IR, XRD
Introduction
The Theban necropolis is one of the most popular archaeological sites in Upper Egypt. The ancient Thebes is located on the western bank of the Nile River (about 650 km south of Cairo) at the city of Luxor. The Nobles tombs at El-Qurna necropolis spread over an area of about two square miles from the necropolis of Dra Abu El
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Nakhtdjehuty was the chief of carpenters and Gold workers in the Amun domain in the time of Ramesses II (c.1279–1212 BC). The tomb entrance is located on the east wall of the court of the tomb of Kheruef (TT192). The main tomb consists of a facade, a hall, and an inner room. The outer façade of the tomb is decorated with depictions of divine barques and temple doors of gold. The hall of the tomb is decorated with scenes form the Book of Gates and scenes from a funerary procession. The inner room contains scenes of a banquet and scenes depicting Nekhtdjehuty kneeling before Osiris and Isis (Porter& Moss, 1970; Kitchen,

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